Sen. Boucher speaks out against future Metro-North fare hikes. Watch the News 8 story:

Article as it appeared on WTNH.com

NEW HAVEN, Conn. (WTNH)– Metro-North is looking to increase the cost to ride come next year. But the plan is being met with a lot of backlash from Connecticut leaders.

Certainly not something people want to hear, especially those who ride Metro-North on a regular basis.

Metro-North says fares for Connecticut riders are based on decisions by the state, not the railroad. According to the Hartford Courant, budget projections show that Connecticut’s share of the New Haven line could jump by as much as 60-percent. Mainly because of a labor contract with large retroactive payouts to thousands of workers. One way to possibly come up with the money needed, increasing prices for commuters, next year.

This issue is being met with strong opposition from state leaders. Governor Malloy has asked for the MTA to explain the tens of millions of dollars in added costs it expects Connecticut to pay to keep trains running. Other leaders have even gone on to say that between power outages, service issues and delays. Commuters have been dealing with enough.

They even go on to say that the focus must now be on improving reliability, not increasing fares. At this point it’s going to be a wait and see with what happens between the MTA and state leaders as to whether this increases will become a reality or not.